California is expected to become the largest weed industry in the United States, but unlike other legalized states, it has no laws in place to protect cannabis consumer data.

In the days before the marijuana legalization movement, the relationship between a pot dealer and their customers was a sacred one. Both were at risk of running afoul of the law, so it was important to be discreet about each other's information. Fake names were used, secret meetings were arranged, and the product itself was referred to by all sorts of codes, as if the cops wouldn't be able to figure out what you were up to when you texted your "friend" for an eighth of "burritos" at 1 AM on a Tuesday.

In February, California Assembly member Evan Low introduced Assembly Bill 2402 as the latest proposed legislation in the US specifically designed to protect the privacy of recreational cannabis users. The bill would prohibit dispensaries from selling this information to data brokers—companies which generally use customer data for targeted advertising—without the customer's consent. It would also prohibit dispensaries from denying their services to customers who choose not to provide their data to third parties.